When I think back about what my life used to look like, I marvel about what God has done.

My journey to transformation has been hard won and I'm not done yet.

Actually two days ago, my daughter and I walked up Stone Mountain. I must have seemed like a terrible mother, (actually I got a few nasty looks) because I was making her go to the top. She was complaining and carrying on and making excuses. She gave me ugly looks even. But I kept challenging her, encouraging her and yes even, as a Nigerian mama, I may have said "my friend, keep moving!" once or twice...Why? Because I knew it was good for her and when she got to the top, I knew exactly what would happen. And I was right. When she got to the top, she broke out into a huge smile. She felt like a winner. She apologized for her poor attitude and we had a coaching session right there about pushing yourself to attain your goals and not settling for just good enough.

As parents sometimes we have to be tough on our kids and it is from a place of love. Because we want more for them.

I'm going to share a transparent story that happened years back when I was still in the before stage of that above photo. My father was visiting from Nigeria. I had just had my daughter and had started back at work. Every day, I came back, wiped out and exhausted and I would grab dinner, carry the baby and zone out in front of the TV. On my days off, I was not much different, I was walking around in a boubou most of the time and doing what I needed to, cooking, catching up on laundry etc. I watched TV, I read novels...that sort of thing.

One day, my dad sat me down and said..."Ekene, I have to be honest with you. I'm concerned. You have become so boring...and drab! What has happened to you!"

Wow! Can you imagine how you would feel if you father said that to you? I cried. It hurt.

It hurt, but it didn't wound. Because regardless of how I feel about whatever is said to me, I always check it for truth and if I find truth, I use it to improve myself.

And when I checked it...He was right. I had really lost myself. When I was young, I hosted dinners at my apartment, I travelled, I was fun to be around (for the most part anyway). I had dreams and opinions and I enjoyed my life.

But somehow my life had become a mundane list of task after task after task.

Now my father said some other truths in that conversation. He told me that if I continued on this path not only would I end up just being mediocre...he could see trouble in my relationship because men, particularly dynamic men lose respect for women that let themselves go...and when a man loses respect...(Again, the man was giving it to me, straight...no chaser!)

He told me that he expected more from me. That I needed to uplevel. I needed to start working for my life. Not just living for my work. It was an awakening.

One of the many awakenings I was having in that period.

Some months after that...I had to face myself and start my transformation process. And that has brought me here. Today. To you. Tomorrow, I'm hosting the WOW summit and I've been able to collaborate with some amazing partners and I'm excited about the impact it's going to have on so many lives.

In the past years, I've received a few honors and awards. I've written books and been invited to speak. I have even been recognized by women I've never met but who follow my work! And I'm literally just at the beginning...

Why am I telling you this?Not just to bare my soul or humble brag...because I'm not interested in either of those for their own sake...I'm interested in transformation. More specifically, your transformation.

In that before picture. I was a pharmacist. A home owner. A wife and a mother. But I was not living up to my full potential at all. I was not operating at capacity AT ALL. I was certainly not living my WOW life.

Today...I still haven't lost all my weight, but I have not gone back to that before photo at all...My business is growing steadily...My relationships are so much more vibrant and healthy.And my father...well, he is no longer bored...In fact he can't keep up!

Have you become boring?Are you just going from one mundane task to the next?Are you yearning to live a WOW life?

What if you made the effort to really change your life?You could become the woman of influence and style that you already are on the inside... You could start feeling sexy and beautiful again, no matter your size...You could start that passion project you have and turn it into a profitable business...You could get that promotion and totally boss up!

You could do all this and more. But in order to get the WOW life, you have to become the WOW woman. You can follow some steps to lose weight, start a business or what have you...but I know one thing...if you don't change who you are at the foundation...those changes...they won't be sustainable. I'm a change leadership expert now (Went back to Georgetown University, specifically for this) and I can tell you for a fact, that most change initiatives fail...

I don't want you to fail!

I want to invite you to join me on a very special journey for only 20 women. It will be online for 2 months and I'm going to work closely with this group. If you are really ready to uplevel your life into WOW status, learn more here.

Today I want to challenge you to take a long hard look at yourself and ask yourself, if some hard talking to is needed. Love must be tough sometimes. I encourage women to forgive themselves...I also encourage women to tell themselves the truth and face their stuff.

You are phenomenal. Truly. Born for a purpose. Made by design. And the world desperately needs you. It needs authentic, powerful, self possessed women.It's time to stop playing small. It's time to stop hiding in the boubous (think mumu) or sweat pants because you just don't want to be bothered. Get bothered. It is your LIFE.

You have to get bothered and work for your life! I'm going to leave you on that note!

If someone forwarded this to you and you realize, you need to get on this list for more truth telling, honest transformation tools...sign up here now and welcome to my community.